The present invention relates to form-work. In particular, the present invention is applicable to form-work manufactured from concrete and other curable non-solid material. It is however to be understood that the invention is not intended to be limited to concrete construction only and that this is intended for explanatory purposes only.
In the building and construction industry it is a well accepted method to construct a structure by use of form-work that is manufactured in situ by pouring concrete into pre-defined form-work. This type of method enables the construction of various structures including but not limited to walls, slabs and kerbs but to mention a few.
Typically the walls of a building are made from relatively large concrete panels that are manufactured in-situ. This is advantageous for it eliminates the complexity and expense of manufacturing these panels off-site and transporting them to the construction site. Furthermore, in-situ construction places fewer restrictions on the size and shape of the panels than would normally be the case where the panels have to be transported.
One method of manufacturing concrete panels is to use suitable material such as timber or plywood to define an enclosed area or cavity into which concrete is poured. Once set, the poured concrete panel is then used as a base for the next panel. Obviously during this process it is necessary to construct new form-work for each new panel or wall and typically a number of panels are made in a stack arrangement, sometimes even more than six panels high, with each panel poured and cured in sequence. To prevent each panel adhering to the other, once cured, the surface of the immediately cured panel is coated with a suitable substance that prevents adhesion of the panels to each other. One such substance is commonly known as bond breaker. The process is repeated until a stack of panels are finished the panels being subsequently lifted and erected as desired.
It is also known to construct a frame which accommodates a number of panels that are stacked vertically, there being separate risers responsible for the form-work of a separate concrete panel. This type of construction is complex and at times difficult and does not enable for different size panels to be made. One way of overcoming this problem is to use sliding risers, but once again, this requires frame-work to support the various sliding risers. It is an object of the present invention to overcome at least some of the above-mentioned problems or provide the public with a useful alternative.